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Committee approves Neighbors of Dunn County draft FY2027 budget, cites staffing and fund-balance planning
Summary
Supervisors approved a FY2027 draft budget for the county-run Neighbors of Dunn County, projecting roughly $19 million in public charges, a staffing budget of about $12.6 million and a $1.2 million increase to the facility's fund balance; the private-pay daily rate would rise 2.5% to $353.
County supervisors approved the Neighbors of Dunn County's round-one FY2027 budget after a presentation from facility administrators and county finance staff that highlighted staffing costs, payer mix and capital planning.
Carmen, the facility administrator, and Dan explained that new financial reporting tied to the county's updated system produced a summarized budget view for the committee. Carmen said public charges for services were projected in the range of about $19 million and that the facility was budgeting an increase to its fund balance of roughly $1.2 million in the draft. "We're projecting to increase the neighbors fund by about 1,200,000," Carmen said.
Why it matters: staffing—particularly nursing labor—drives the facility's costs. Carmen presented staffing figures used in the draft: total staffing costs about $12.6 million, nursing staff costs about $10.5 million, internal nursing costs roughly $9.3 million and a budgeted $1.2 million for agency staff to backfill vacancies and cover shifts.
Administrators also outlined payer-mix assumptions that feed revenue projections: approximately 70% of residents were Medicaid recipients, about 10% private pay, and Medicare represented a valuable but time-limited payer for short-term rehabilitation stays. Carmen said the facility sets its private-pay rate and proposed a 2.5% increase from $344 per day in 2026 to $353 per day in 2027 to track inflation and costs; she noted Medicaid and other state-set rates remain outside local control.
Committee members asked for clarification about how agency staff costs interact with internal staffing budgets; Dan confirmed that the $1.2 million in agency costs represents anticipated backfill on top of a fully staffed internal budget figure and that numbers will continue to be refined before final county board adoption in November. Dan also explained changes to fund-balance policy that retain more of the facility's earnings for capital repairs rather than transferring all surplus to the general fund.
The committee moved to approve the draft budget as presented. John made the motion and Barb seconded; the committee voted in favor and the motion carried. Carmen said budget details will be revisited in subsequent rounds before a final vote by the full county board in November.
Next steps: administrators will continue refining staffing projections and line-item detail in the run-up to November; supervisors asked for interim snapshots of agency-staff spending and any voucher lines tied to the recent water incident to be provided at the next meeting.
